Tome and I had another fun match even though it was steady rain the entire time we were shooting. Of course, 5 minutes after we were done shooting, the rain stopped. - hopefully it stayed dry for the rest of the shooters. I think we're going to invest in waterproof pants and wellies!!

We would have liked to stay and help as we normally do but we needed to start for home. Perhaps next time we can stay a little longer.

As always, it was good to see everyone. Danny R...you look great, keep up the good work!

Last time I shot in the rain I learned to always have a change of clothes, a baseball cap,and a rain slicker, and to keep my glasses away from my face to avoid fogging. I was surprised how well I did with the bags on the targets

I allowed all day for the match and will return to Charlotte tomorrow. I didn't want any pressure to finish. Arrived around 0900 and BS'd for a while, then signed in at all 3 stages and BS'd some more. (Hey part of the appeal of GSSF is seeing old friends and making new.)

Shot 3 divisions of 5 to Glock starting at 1115. Heard that there were delays at Glock 'M so had lunch and BS'd some more. Finally signed in at Glock 'M and within 15 minutes was one the tree and shot at 1355.

Finished Glock 'M and X'd in at the plates where I had my longest wait. Tried to bust Mark Ramsey's balls only to have him turn the tables on me (I'll have to rethink that in the future.) Finished the plates around 1556.

Left the site about 1800.

Slow day? Yeah, but I made it that way. I tried to establish my pace. I allowed for the whole day. I shot on my schedule and I think it paid off. I didn't have my best match but it looks like I reduced my biggest enemy: penalties (more specific Mikes.)

And if that darn Brian Dover hadn't been watching when I shot my G26 I would have done even better (it certainly wasn't my fault!).

Squading still has some issues here but they got resolved quickly.
The rain started yesterday and as steady till about 10:30am I think. Caused me to take my time and settle down while I shot the stages too.
Just had to help out as the crowd started to arrive around 0930 - 1000. We all got thru the match in record time and had fun working with folks as well.

Wish I could swap my Comp and Guardian scores but oh well it was a blast either way.

I think the range perked up and the shooting really took off after the rain let up. Was a good time to see all our many friends and get to visit if but between the shooting and pasting.

All the RO's worked hard and the Red Shirts put out their best to keep the fun stuff happening with safety for all. We certainly appreciate all the work behind the scenes as well as the easy stuff you all do for us, the shooters.

Would have liked to hang around longer but I have a urgent work related call come in last night so I had to get my buns back soon.

I think the real compliment is, "We look forward to shooting the match again next year!"

Arrived at 1350 hrs. Had pre-registered.
Muddy. Very Muddy.
3 arrays for 5 to GLOCK and GLOCK M. Shot 3 simultaneously! 2 Plate racks.
Wonderful RO staff.
Shot 6 divisions.
Rodney Leeber of Team Carver Mounts GAVE me 100 rounds of .45 ammo and offered me use of a pistol when mine quit. The GLOCK armorer did a great job and fixed my G30 SF, but I still borrowed Rodney's bullets.

James, his daughter Brit., Bob, Billie, Steve, his wife, and so many other wonderful volunteers were working the match. GREAT JOB!!!

Mark Ramsey, Mark Leeber, and Patti Norton were wearing the red shirts and were helpful as always!!! Very efficient!!

Beckley Gun Club does a great job every year...this year in torrential rain.

Well, Saturday started off as a recipe for disaster. Heavy rains, a muddy and long private road down into the pit, parking in water and mud. What a road. It seemed 20 miles long. Every now and then, if you looked carefully you could spot a piece of gravel in the dirt and mud. Even the ruts had ruts. Yet people showed up, showed up from many, many States. Was it a disaster? No! Enter the Staff of GSSF and the Volunteers of The Beckley Gun Club. What a crew! GSSF was well represented by Patti Norton, Mark Ramsey and Mark Leeber. Registration was as smooth as silk. Bob and his Beckley crew did a stellar job keeping things moving in the rain, which subsided around noon on Saturday. I made an important discovery. The ink on the labels is not really waterproof. OK, enough background.
There were three 5 To Glock stages running simultaneously, as were three Glock M stages. Two Plate Racks plus a practice plate bay. Great hot dogs at the lunch vendor. Really nice Glock/GSSF merchandise for sale. Scott, the regional L.E. Sales Manager was armorer for the weekend. His biggest challenge came first thing Saturday morning when my teammates first shot was a squib--one of my reloads. It took Scott a while, but he finally cleared the barrel.
The R.O.'s stood in the rain for hours so that we could play our game. They are as dedicated staff as I've ever encountered. Every one worked hard to make our experience as pleasant as possible, and I thank them for their effort.
As for shooting in the rain, I should do it more often. My unofficial score of 131.44 was my best score since September 2001 and my 3rd best score in all 49 matches to date. Not too shabby for a 70 year old. My Competition score was 136.xx, both divisions shot with G19's. My Am/Civ Gen2 G19 now has 94,000 rounds fired. Hope to break 100,000 next year. I may even celebrate by replacing the original trigger spring and firing pin spring.
I saw so many of my old friends, made many new friends. Can't remember all, but I do remember Rodney Leeber, who is one of my very best friends, Bob & Pat Temple, Ann Young, Coy & Mrs. Parks, Tony & Andrea Boone, Bryan Dover, Mr. Wilhelm, at least a dozen of my Roanoke friends, all my teammates. It was so great I returned on Sunday to see even more friends, as they are the best part of GSSF.
If there is any way you can make it to this match next year, by all means do so. It is a most wonderful experience. Tentative date for The Coalfields Classic V is August 08-09, 2015. I'll be there both days for sure, selling umbrellas.

Thanks for the kind words. Hadn't shot a GSSF match since last year's Coalfields Mudbog. I'd forgotten how much fun they are. We've been doing 3gun and, in comparison, the GSSF matches are a breeze, except for the numbers. Official number this year was 437!!! despite global warming. This crew of "red shirts" were a major contributing factor to making this easy. I arranged for the tent & port-a-johns and James & I begged for RO's. Glock did everything else, and that was a lot.

Speaking of RO's we had a couple brand new ones. They caught on quickly and did really well. We managed to run this with 30 volunteers so you can imagine they worked their butts off. As a result, the club officers voted to give 5 Glock certificates in the RO drawing. Glock seemed surprised at this, but these folks really put in a lot of work and deserved the rewards. Wish we'd have had 30 certificates.

Looking forward to next year and shooting in some others in the meantime.

Y'all stay safe.
Bob

It was so much fun seeing some of the regulars and meeting new friends. Wish I had time to BS with 'em all like Wilhelm did. That's really a huge part of GSSF.

Hey Everyone, this is Stephen Alexander. My Wife, Bonniejean and I worked the 5 to Glock stage. I have worked this stage for all of the Beckley Shoots, This year Bonniejean ran the squad-ding, the last two shoots she mostly stayed under the big tent and helped with registration and club business. So here is my take on the the 2014 Coalfield Mudbog.

Heck yeah!!! It was a blast. On 5 to Glock we had a great crew. I would Like to again thank, Jeremy Kifer and Rodney Leeber for jumping in on Saturday and helping all day. These two were the keys that made if possible for us to run all three bays. Rodney said it best when around one o'clock on Saturday he turned around and observed, "hey whats going on, there is supposed to be a hundred angry people standing behind us". At which time one person, with a smile on his face, said "I'm angry" and all of the 10 to 15 folks standing there laughed. I know in the past our stage was slow and it caused some folks to get a bit "grumpy", I heard non of the moans and grones I have heard in the past. Also a big thank you to Jim Sizemore, Alex Adkins and all of the other regular BGC folks that gave up their weekend to put on a great shoot. In the past on Saturday around midday I am starting to get uncomfortable with how the shooters experience is going, and I am trying to talk to folks and get their minds off of the waits. This year every one was happy and focused on shooting. When I heard the numbers at the end of the day Saturday I was amazed.

Great call by Bob and James, to swap the 5 to Gock and The Plates bays. I know the Plate shooters and staff had to deal with a bit of mud. but the foot traffic pasting the tombstones really created a mud fest last year. It was a ton better this year.

Sunday was a perfect day. The rain stayed away, the temperature was mild, the match ran perfect, and to top it off Bonniejean won a pistol certificate!!!!

The Red shirts this year did an outstanding job. It really is an amazing thing GSSF does and it takes great folks to pull it off.

The competitors. I have really only been involved in the shooting sports for the last three years. The people are the reason. You guys rock. You're gun is down, here use mine. You need AMMO to do a reshoot, I have some in the car. I heard all of these things more than once this weekend. Along side of the teaching, ribbing, and laughter!!!

I like the Beckley match and especially the people there. Nice, friendly, and helpful. They put up with a lot this year. It's no fun ROing in the rain and the mud. They did it with a smile and were always cheerful. I hope to see them again next year.

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